Jason's Ride to Raise Money For Salisbury Zoo

SALISBURY, Md.- The fourth annual Jason's Ice Cream Motorcycle Ride to Benefit The Salisbury Zoo will be held this Saturday. Bikers will ride out of the zoo's main parking lot and travel to Island Creamery in Chincoteague, Va., for an afternoon of cool breezes and cold ice cream.

The program was created by 17-year-old Jason Tarpley in 2010 as a Bar Mitzvah project, Jason's Ice Cream Motorcycle Ride has raised more than $2,700 for the Salisbury Zoo's new, state-of-the-art animal health clinic. Money raised from registration and donations will continue to benefit the facility, which opened this year.

"I used to visit the zoo as a child and I came up with a way to give back to it," Tarpley said.

Registration opens at 9 a.m. and the ride rolls out at 10:30 a.m. Admission is $20 per rider.

According to Salisbury Zoo Director Ralph Piland, the funds are greatly needed and appreciated.

"Continuing to raise money for the new animal health clinic is important we are just starting to operate that and it's an important improvement for the status of the zoo and zoo community, " Piland said. "It reflects how the Salisbury Zoo is embraced by this community. And work like Jason is doing is not only essential to the zoo in terms of financial success, but it is also important in terms of credibility to the zoo that it is embraced and understood by the community."